Pacific Northwest-Seattle, Portland and Alaska

Pacific Northwest-Seattle, Portland and Alaska

I made it up to Seattle for the first time this past August . My wifes uncle lives up there on Bonney Lake and we decided to head up for a week before we took our cruise to Alaska. Here are some pictures of food from the week. Same style as my last post...just pictures for the most part and brief descriptions

First stop was Heaven Sent Chicken in Renton, WA. We got there right when they opened and had a few things. The chicken strips, the breast and roll were fantastic.

Cheeseburger and fries from The Palace Kitchen. Great bacon, great cheese (Beechers), great burger, but a crappy bun. Fries were good too but they were thin so they got cold fast. Coconut cream pie was tasty.

Pick Quick Drive In in Fife. Thats my father in law outside the front. Good cheeseburgers, fries and an amazing blackberry shake (no picture unfortunately).

Spuds Fish and Chips. The big piece is cod, the smaller pieces were halibut. Pretty tasty and a beautiful setting right across the street from the water.

Molly Moons Ice Cream. This flavor was called "melted chocolate" and it tasted exactly like a melted Hershey bar in ice cream form. It was so good, I came back again later in the week. I even bought their cookbook so I could make it at home.

By far my favorite meal in Seattle. Paseo in Ballard. First picture is the Carribean Roast. Second picture is the Paseo Press. Both of these usually come slathered in aioli but Im not down with mayo type sauces. The pork is so juicy and the onions are so tender, you dont really need any of the "sauce". I ate both of those sandwiches in one sitting and could have ate a third. Its my favorite sandwich on the West Coast that I have ever had. I dreamt about those sandwiches for months after.

Chocolate Long John from Top Pot Donuts in Seattle. About 2 bucks each but they were good!

Bacon cheeseburger from Red Mill Burgers. Unfortunately it was not good at all....neither were the sides. This was one of the meals I was looking forward to the most, but left totally unsatisfied. Overrated IMO.

Porchetta Sandwich and Salami Sampler Plate from Salumi. The food was good but the service/lack of service was horrible. My wife asked a simple question about salami and the lady working there basically laughed in her face and made her feel stupid. This place is too "hipster" for my liking anyways. I wouldnt come back.

Pike Street Fish Fry in Seattle. I got halibut w/fries and cod by itself. Couldn't really tell the difference. The picture looks way better than what it was. The fish was fried properly and fine, but the portion was real small...almost "fish nuggets" and the fries were bad. I usually love fresh cut fries but these were limp, tasted off and a tad burnt. Didn't like them at all and tossed 90% of them.

Taco Time in Seattle. Surprisingly very very good. Their taco shells were the best fast food shells I have had. They use to have these in CA back in the 80s/early 90s from what I hear. They were tasty.

We took a one day trip to Portland-----------------------------------

Pine State Biscuits in Portland, OR. First picture is an andouille corn dog. It was awesome! The second picture is what they call The McIsley. Chicken, mustard, honey and pickles on a biscuit. Every aspect of it was great EXCEPT the biscuit. It was dry and tasteless. You would think with "Biscuit" in their name, it would be good... unfortunately it was not.

Ice cream from the Tillamook Factory in Tillamook, OR. By the way....the drive from Portland out to Tillamook is absolutely beautiful. Its on route 6 which takes you the whole way there. It was a sight to see. Very enjoyable drive.

Voodoo Donuts in Portland. First one is the maple bacon bar. Second one is the "old dirty bastard" donut with frosting, dipped in Oreos, and then topped with peanut butter. I liked the odb the best.

Apizza Scholls in Portland, OR. Definitely a proper pizza. Top 2 or 3 on the West Coast IMO. It was fantastic!

Back to Seattle---------------------

Beechers Cheese Shop at Pikes Place Market. Mac and cheese in the first picture and a grilled cheese sandwich in the second. Their cheese is awesome. Their main kind is called their "flagship". I have found it out here at Bristol Farms and will buy it often. Its a great, sharp cheddarish tasting cheese.

Two chain places at the airport. Ivars and Anthonys. They were definitely edible but they werent anything special. Ivars clam chowder was fantastic though.

Now onto Alaska----------------------------------

King crab leg, snow and dungeness crab from Tracys King Crab Shack in Juneau, AK. Pricey but well worth it. As fresh as you can get and absolutely delicious.

Halibut and chips from Skagway Brewing Company in Skagway, AK.

Halibut and chips from Alaska Fish House in Ketchikan, AK. This fish was great. You can watch the guy cut up the fillets and hand batter each piece. The fries and vinegar based slaw were tasty as well.

Halibut and chips from Red Fish Blue Fish in Victoria, BC Canada. I had to wait in line for about an hour, it costs $38 bucks for 3 pieces of fish, fries and 2 drinks. You know what? It was TOTALLY WORTH IT. This is tied with Paseo as the best meal of the trip. This fish was perfect. The pieces are gigantic, it was fried perfectly, the cashier was super nice and easy on the eyes ;-), and the overall vibe was great. I dreamt about this one for months too. It was the best fish and chips I ever had.

Great report, I often get to spend a lot of time in the Pacific North West. I particularly like Poulsobo, Silverdale and of course Seattle. Poulsbo reminds me a lot of Solvang in Ca. I particularly like Tully's coffee which I was introduced to at Seatac.

@Brisketboy- If Im ever up there again, I will check that place out. I lived in Santa Barbara for many years and Solvang was just a quick trip up the mountain. I liked it up there a lot and Im sure I would enjoy Poulsbo. Thanks for the recommendation!

@CCinNJ- Gotta get the halibut. When in Rome ;-). Its super expensive but worth every penny. When am I going to be up there again (hopefully someday but who knows). Know what I mean?

Alright guys....have a great weekend and Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah to all!

Great report! I love all the seafood pics as well as those two great looking sandwiches. My daughter went to school in Portland and we went to Pine State every time I visited as well as Pok Pok. I always got the "Reggie" (see link) and the biscuit was always great. Again, great pics and report!http://www.pinestatebiscuits.com/

Great report, great pictures, Great Pacific Northwest, nothing like Fresh Halibut..........Like Pancho said, he's a Reggie guy, I'm a Reggie deluxe guy, The Chicken is great and I think it helps having a good sausage gravy with the sandwich...................Thanks for the reports..........I hope my fellow Pacific Northwesterners took good care of you............Thanks for the great reports............I need a Pork sandwich from Paseo's now.........pnwc